§ Mr. Gryllsasked the Secretary of State for Industry what is the total amount of (a) assistance offered to date and (b) moneys paid to date under the paper and board industry scheme.
Mr. Alan WilliamsNone in both cases. Applications are being considered at present.
702W
§ Mr. Richard Wainwrightasked the Secretary of State for Industry if he will list in the Official Report a summary of the main recommendations of the report of the Paper and Board Industry Working Party, together with details of the action taken by the Government to implement those recommendations.
§ Mr. CryerI assume that recommendations referred to in the hon. Member's Question are those of the sector working party for the paper and board industry, established to help formulate the Government's industrial strategy.
The sector working party produced a preliminary list of recommendations at the end of September. The following is a summary of the principal points together with an outline of the action taken so far. The sector working party is continuing its examination of the industry, and further reports and recommendations can be expected to follow in due course.
Recommendation
The Government and both sides of industry were asked to examine what steps could be taken to secure a better pulp/paper price ratio from foreign suppliers.
Action
Government officials, employers and trade unions have through their international links made clear to overseas Governments and industries that they regard the present ratios as unsatisfactory.
Recommendation
The industry was invited to make the fullest use of the £23 million scheme of assistance to install more waste paper-using plant and to advance recycling technology.
Action
The Department of Industry, the trade association and trade unions have all given wide publicity to the scheme and guidance notes have been circulated to every company in the industry. The response has been encouraging and to date 24 projects are under consideration by the Department of Industry. Further publicity is planned.
Recommendation
The industry, the Departments of Industry, Environment and Trade and the Waste Management Advisory Council were urged to adopt a variety of measures to increase and protect waste paper supplies, to encourage local authority and voluntary group collections, and to consider ways of mitigating the harmful effects of fluctuations in supply and demand.
Action
The WMAC has recently set up a working party with special responsibility for advising generally on measures to increase the recycling of waste paper. A small sub-group of the 703W sector working party, chaired by NEDC, is also looking at ways of reducing market instability in waste paper. The Department of Industry is playing an active role in an EEC working group which is examining the Community aspects of waste paper collection and use. The DoE has issued guidance to local authorities including a special report on costing collection schemes.
Recommendation
The Government were asked to use their influence with gas, electricity and water authorities to try to obtain favourable treatmen for industry on tariffs.
Action
The sector working party has agreed that as a first step the industry should make its own approach to the authorities concerned. The Department of Industry has offered to take up with the water authorities any case of particular difficulty over the phasing of increased charges.
Recommendation
The Government were urged to dissuade the EEC from framing legislation on water and air pollution in unnecessarily regid terms and thus protect the industry from the cost of penalties which such legislation would entail.
Action
The Departments of Environment and industry are taking this point fully into account in their participation in formation of EEC legislation.
Recommendation
The Government were asked to take action against alleged dumping of paper and board and in the review of the duty-free quota arrangements try to obtain certain important concessions from our EFTA partners on the fixing of quota levels.
Action
There have been a series of meetings between representatives of both sides of the industry and officials on these subjects. So far insufficient prima facie evidence of dumping has been produced to support a formal investigation but discussions are continuing.
Discussions have taken place with the EFTA countries on the quota arrangements. These have not led to agreement on any changes acceptable to both sides and the Government are now giving their conclusions to the EFTA countries. No final decision has yet been taken on our position.